House rejects effort to raise SALT cap

A largely symbolic effort to raise the cap on the state and local tax deduction for most joint filers failed in the House, as the rule to open debate on the bill was rejected by a vote of 195-225 on Feb. 14.

The bill (H.R. 7610) would have doubled the current $10,000 cap for joint filers to $20,000 for those who made less than $500,000 in 2023.

Republican leadership agreed to bring the bill through the Rules Committee for a potential vote as a concession to members of the House Republican Conference from high-tax states in return for their support of the nearly $80 billion deal around temporary extensions of three business tax breaks and a short-term expansion of the child tax credit.

The bill was not expected to become law and was blocked on procedural grounds. Under House procedure, bills typically must have a rule for debate, a certain amount of time and other guidelines for consideration. The rule failed, as 18 Republicans joined all Democrats participating in the vote to unanimously oppose the rule, the latest bill rule to fail in a Congress that has broken the record for voting down such rules.

Had the bill passed the House, it would have faced an uphill climb in the Senate, where it would have required 60 votes to advance. Despite some bipartisan interest in providing SALT cap relief, there does not appear to be a viable path forward this year. The cap is scheduled to expire at the end of 2025, along with many provisions in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.